NC State Upset Virginia On The Road
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA – The NC State Wolfpack traveled to Charlottesville, Virginia Wednesday evening and upset the 15th ranked Virginia Cavaliers 68-61. This is the Wolfpack’s fourth-straight road victory.
Throughout the season, when NC State forces an opponent into 15 or more turnovers in a game the Pack is 9-1 and they are 9-0 when it scores 19 or more points off opponent turnovers. In their previous victory against the Wake Forest Deamon Deacons, the Pack forced 19 turnovers and had a 28-5 advantage in points off of turnovers.
After not connecting on their first shot, NC State found a groove and connected on four of their next five shots including their first three attempts from behind the three-point line. As the Cavaliers went cold, not scoring for four and a half minutes, it allowed the Pack to jump out to a 17-4 lead at the 11:08 mark in the first half.
The Cavaliers found their offensive rhythm, but the Wolfpack didn’t slow down, as the lead was still eight points at the 3:45 mark in the first half. NC State scored 14 of their first 25 points in the paint to take control of the game inside.
Virginia was able to cut the lead down to six with the score 29-23, as the Wolfpack only make 2 of their last eight shots to close the half. Through the first 20 minutes, Cam Hayes led the way for the Wolfpack with seven points. Jay Huff led the way for the Cavaliers with eight points and four rebounds. NC State was able to dominate inside, as they scored 18 of their first 29 points in the paint.
Virginia started the half on a 6-0 to tie the game at 29 before Shakeel Moore knocked down two free throws to give the Wolfpack a two-point 31-29 lead at the first media timeout of the second half.
Virginia grabbed their first lead of the game at 35-33 when Jay Huff knocked down two free throws. The Wolfpack responded with an 8-0 run to grab the lead back at 41-35 with 11:28 remaining in the game. Virginia went cold again not scoring for over two and a half minutes, which allowed the Wolfpack to increase the lead to eight with 8:29 left in the game.
Although the Cavaliers only connected on two of ten shots, they were able to cut the deficit down to five with 4:19 to play. DJ Funderburk scored a traditional three-point play on the next possession to bump the lead back to eight with 3:51 remaining in the game.
Virginia cut the lead down to four with just over a minute remaining when Jay Huff knocked down two free throws, but that was the closest the Cavaliers got, as the Wolfpack were able to pull off the upset, by knocking down some free-throws in the final minute.
The Wolfpack were led by Cam Hayes with 16 points, DJ Funderburk with 14 points and Shakeel Moore with 12 points. Virginia was led by Jay Huff with 19 points and 11 rebounds and Sam Hauser with 21 points. The Wolfpack dominated inside as they outscored Virginia 30-16 in the paint.
“To say how proud I am of these guys is unbelievable. We showed so much fight and I’m truly proud of our guys,” NC State head coach Kevin Keatts said following the win.
When asked about how himself and the other freshamn have grown this season, Cam Hayes said, “We’re just getting better as we get more time on the court. Just us getting the experience is helping us grow as players.”
Next up for the Wolfpack,(11-9, 7-8 ACC) will be a matchup with the Pittsburgh Panthers Sunday, February 28th at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, NC. The game is set to tip-off at 4 PM.